Razor-strop protector



. Jan. 16,1923. 1,442,088;

1. R. NOLAN.

RAZOR STROP PROTECTOR.

HLED FEB. 7, I919. s SHEETS-SHEET l:

V j g $24 .1. i

[1711 en 250 r:

J. R. NOLAN.

RAZOR STBOP PROTECTOR.

(FILED FEB- 7. I919. I 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Jan. 16, 1923'. I 1,442,088.

71111,. VIIIA VIII 11111111111. '11, IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIlIIlIIIl/(IIIIIIIIILII liwenzor Patented Jan. 16, 1923.

UNITED STATES JOHN'R. NOLAN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

RAZOR-STROP PROTECTOR.

Application filed February 7, 1919. Serial No. 275,495.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN R. NOLAN, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the city and county of New York, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Razor-Strop Protectors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a razor-strep protector designed for use, more especially, in barber shops.

The object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of simple and efficient construction and operation whereby a razorstrop, when not in actual use, is effectually protected from dust and other foreign matter and at the same time is subjected to the sterilizing influence of a suitable antiseptic; and whereby-also the strop can be readily Withdrawn for use, and, upon performing its function, can be automatically retracted into the apparatus.

The embodiment of my invention herein illustrated comprises a suitable container having a strop outlet, a rotary spring-controlled strep-winding element within said container constructed to wind the body of the strop in an open loop, and means for supporting an antiseptic .within the container in such relation to the strop that both working surfaces of the latter are effectually sterilized. Provisions are had whereby the strop, including its swivel end connection, can be readily withdrawn from the con tainer and temporarily held in operative position against the retractive force of the winding element; and whereby also the strop can be readily released, at the will of the operator, to permit its retraction into the container. Means are also provided whereby the strop outlet of the'container is substantially sealed when the strop is confined within and also when it is withdrawn from the container.

The invention also comprises novel features of construction and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described; the precise scope of the invention being defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of an apparatusembodying the principle of my 1nvention, the structure being illustrated as attached to a shelf or the like, and the strop as confined within the casing or container.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section, partly in end elevation, of the apparatus, as on the line 22 of Fig.1.

Fig. v3 is a sectional side elevation of the upper part of the apparatus, showingthe relation of the parts when the strop is Withdrawn for use.

Fig. a is a transverse horizontal section V of the structure, as on the line 14 of Referring to the drawings, 10 designates a hollow bracket-like body, preferably of cast metal, constituting the upper portion of an oppropriate casing or container for a razor strop. This body, in the form illustrated, includes a top 11,'sides' 12, ends 13, and depending side arms 14: terminating in annular bearings 15. The arms 14; are preferably sectional, their lower bearing portions comprising separate members which are attached to the respective upper portlons by means such as screws 16. This sec tional construction facilitates the operation of turning the annular bearings and also effectlng thelr axlal almement when assembled. The body is represented as applied to the front of a shelf, A, so as to lie beneath the latter; the attaching meansembodying a jaw 17 formed on the top 11 and positioned to overhang the shelf, and lateral lugs 18 also formed on such topand provided with vertical thumb screws 19 Y (or the like) arranged to bear against the under side of the shelf.

The forward end of the body is provided with a transverse opening 20 of appropriate form and size to permit the free passage therethrough of a razor-strop, as 21, including its swivel hook connection 22. It is also exteriorly recessed, as at 23, above the opening, to receive a pivoted strop clamping .member 2 1, all of which will be hereinafter described.

y a The lower part ofthe casing preferably suit ably of said plates being provided with a central opening co-axial with the adjacent bearing rin 15.

lVithin the casing is mounted a. winding device to which one end of the strop fiexibly connected, whereby the body of the strop can be retracted within the casing. This device in its preferred form embodies an open skeleton reel comprising two disks 29 arranged in spaced, relation to each other and secured, as by welding, to a skeleton hub rotatably mounted on the bearings 15, the distance between the inner faces of said disks being substantially equal to the width of the razor-strop. The hub preferably comprises two flanged rings 30 connected at spaced intervals by slotted bars 31, the whole being an integral casting. The disks, which are spaced somewhat from the respective sides of the casing, are provided, adj acent their peripheries, with corresponding short inwardly projecting lugs 32 which are conveniently formed by radially slitting the disks at intervals and bending inwardly the alternate tongues thus resulting. he oppositely-located lugs 32 of the two disks are rigidly connected by distance members which afford substantial supports for the raZor-strop adjacent the periphery of the reel; the unbent peripheral portions of the disks constituting flanges which prevent edgewise displacement of the stro-p. The members 33 preferably comprise corrugated metal strips having at or adjacent their ends disposed lips 34 which, being clinched upon the adjacent lugs 32, effectually maintain the disks in spaced relation to each other. The strop contacts with the upper convex portions of the members 33, which portions are preferably perforated at intervals, as at 34:. By this construction it will be seen that a series of channels or ducts communicating at their ends with the chamber constituted by the casing are provided beneath each of the supported portions of the strop; that the perforations 34c afiord direct communication between the chamber and such strop portions, and that the effective surfaces of the remaining portions of the strop are well exposed within the chamber. Affixed to one of the annular bearings 15 and to the opposite hub ring 30 are the respective ends of a suitable spring, as 35, which is constructed and arranged to maintain the reel normally in a defined position of rest, so that when the reel is turned on its axis, in opposition to the action of the spring, and released, such spring will automatically return the reel to its normal position. The disks 29 are connected by a tie-bolt 36 having preferably a spacing sleeve or roller 37 thereon, which roller is located vertically above the axis of the reel and in substantial horizontal alinement with the strop opening of the casing.

The razor-strep employed with my device is of any usual or approved character. That shown comprises two superposed straps having the swivel hook connection 22 at one end and a handle portion 38 at the opposite end. The swivel bearing end of the strop is connected to the roller 37 of the reel by means of a strip 39 of flexible material, such, for example, as leather or canvas, of the same or substantially the same width as the strop; which strip constitutes, in effect an extension of the strop. In the present instance the outer or free end of the strip is provided with an eye connection 40 to which the swivel hook of the strop can be readily attached.

From the foregoing it will be seen that when the reel is in its normal position, the strip, together with the major portion of the body of the strop, is wound in an open loop about the peripheral supporting portions of the reel, and that the handle end of the strop extends outwardly through the opening 20 of the casing with the handle in convenient position to be grasped by the user. See Fig. 1. Thus the strop can be bodily pulled outward against the winding action of the reel until the swivel is exposed, as seen in Fig. 3.

If desired the supporting members 33 may be omitted in which case the lugs 32 will act as supports for the marginal portions of the strop when it is wound on the reel. I prefer, however, to use the said members as thereby the otherwise liability of longitudinal sagging or bellying of the strop between its edges is obviated.

A suitably-disposed stop formed on or secured to the strip 39, abuts against the inner portion of the slotted end wall of the bracket when the strop is pulled outward, and thus not only limits the extent of withdrawal of the strop from the casing, but it also localizes the strain on the fixed bracket during the stropping operation. Consequently the reel and the casing drum, being relieved of the strain incident to that operation, can be made relatively light. In the present instance the stop comprises an angle piece 41 faced with felt 42, or other relatively soft substance, and secured. to the upper side of the strip.

The strop clamping member 24: previously referred to comprises a body pivotally mounted within the reccss23 in the forward end of the casting directly QbOXE the mouth of the opening, and provided with an eccentrically disposed roughened lower jaw 43 adapted to swing normally down upon the top of the strop, or of the strip, as the case may be, and thus operate to clamp the strop or strip upon the floor of the opening against the retractive force of the reel.

} ably-disposed spring 44. The pivoted body is provided with an outward extension 45 constituting a thumb piece by the manipulation of which the jaw can be conveniently raised to release'the strop. The jaw 43 is swung outward by the frictional contact therewith of the strop and its connections during their withdrawal from the casing, but when the upper edge of the folded material 46 securing the eye connection 40 to the strip escapes the jaw the-latter bites upon the strip, directly in advance of the stop 41, and thus acts effectually to prevent the retraction of thestrop into the casing until the clamping device is manually raised as above mentioned. The strip is preferably provided with a filler piece, 47 of leather, which is engaged by the'jaw. The jaw when thus clamped upon the filler, tends, in conjunction with said filler and the strip, to

seal the mouth of the opening. The stop 41 onthe strip also contributes to the sealing of the'o'pening at the same time. When the body of the strop is retracted into the casing the jaw gripping the strop 'co-acts therewith to seal to some extent the mouth of the opening. I preferably provide the inner side of the body 24 (or the adjacent wall of the recess) throughout its length with a strip 24 of yielding packing material which is adapted when the said body is in clamping position to close the space between such body and wall and thus serve as a supplemental sealing means.

A feature of my invention ist-he-provision of means whereby the working faces of the strop, when it is wound about the reel, are subjected to the sterilizing influence of an antiseptic. In the form shown I provide a cylindrical vessel 48 having a foraminated wall adapted to be detachably supported within the casin co-axially with the reel; the central perforation of the side plate (25) of the casing permitting the insertion of the device into the annular bearingsof the bracket arms. The open end of the vessel is closed by a screw head 49, and the adjacent bearing is internally threaded to receive the same. Preparatory to the application of the vessel to the casing, the former is filled with cotton, 50, or other suitable absorbent material, and such material is soaked with an appropriate liquid antiseptic. IVhen the charged device is applied to the casing the vapor or fumes emitted from the sterilizing agent escape through the foraminations and being diffused throughout the interior of the casing act effectively upon the exposed upper and lower surfaces of the strop which are well exposed and are maintained under tension about the periphery of the reel. The vessel 48 can be readily removed from, the casing,

recharged with an antiseptic, andreplaced, as occasion may require. a

Preferably the reel disks are perforated, as at .51," to afford free communication between the inner and outer parts of the reel,

and thus permit the diffusion of thesteriliz in; medium throughout the interior of the chamber constituted by the casing.

While the apparatus above descrlbed is illustrated as positioned beneath a shelf,

such apparatus can, obviously, be readily reversedand arranged to project above the shelf, if desired; or the bracket body can be provided with laterally extending clamping members whereby the apparatus can be detachably secured to, so as to lie beneath the arm of a barbers chair. Further, in lieu of the cylindrical vessel above described an open-mouthed bottle or similar vessel containing a volatile sterilizing liquid may be suspended between the sides of the reel from an axial bar supported in and between the annular bearings, and the rim of the casing may be constructed with a hinged portion, in the form of a door, to facilitate access to the interior of the casing, if desired. It is understood that my invention is not limited to the details of construction herein disclosed, as the same may be varied within the principle of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim 1. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strop out let, and strop retracting means within said casing, comprising an element constructed open loop within the casing.

2. In a razor-strop protector, a casing to support the body of a strop ina single.

constituting a' chamberhaving a strop outlet, strop-retracting means within said casing, comprising an element constructed to support the body of a strop in a single open loop within the casing, and means for temporarily preventing retraction. of the strop when it is withdrawn from the chamber.

-3. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a, strop outlet, strop-retracting means within said casing, comprising an element constructed to support the body of a strop in a single open loop within the casing, and means located at said outlet adapted to hold the strop against the action of-the retracting means Igvhen the strop is withdrawn from thechamer. p 4. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constitutingachamber having a strop outlet, and a reel mounted to rotate Within said casing and constructed to support the body of a strop in a single open loopwith the free end of the strop extending through the outlet.

p 5. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep out- V let, and. a reel mounted to rotate within said casing and constructed to support the body of a strep in a single open loop with the free end of the strep extending through the outlet, and a spring arranged to maintain. said reel in a normal position with the strep supported thereon in a single loop.

6. In a razor-strep protector, a casing having a strep outlet, strep-retracting means within said casing, a strep having a swivel connection at one end, and a flexible member connecting the strep swivel and the retracting means and permittingthe complete withdrawal of the strep, including its swivel, through the outlet. 7

7. In a razor-strep protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep outlet, a reel mounted to rotate within said casing, a strep having a swivel connection at one end, and a flexible member connecting the strep swivel and the reel and permitting the complete withdrawal of the strep, including its swivel, through the outlet.

8. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep outlet,'a reel mounted to rotate within said casing, a strep having-a swivel connection at one end, a flexible member connecting the strep swivel and the reel and permitting the complete withdrawal of the strep, including its swivel, through the outlet, and a stop on said member arranged'to bear against the inner side of the outlet wall of the casing when the strep is withdrawn. I

9. In a razor-strep protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep outlet, a reel mounted to rotate within said casing, a strep having a swivel connection at one end, a flexible member connecting the strep swivel and the reel and permitting the complete withdrawal of the strep, including its swivel, through the outlet, and a step on said member arranged to bear against the inner side of the outlet wall of the casing when the strep is withdrawn from the latter, said step extending throughout the length of the outlet.

10. In a razor-strep protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep outlet, strop-retracting means within the easing comprising an element constructed to support the body of a strep in a single open loop, and an oscillatory friction clamp movable within said outlet and operable upon the strep in opposition to the action of the retracting means.

11. In a razor-strop protector, a casing constituting a chamber havinga strep outlet, stroprretracting means within the easing comprising an element constructed. to support the body of a strep in a single open loop, and an oscillatory clamp having an eccentric gripping jaw movable within said outlet and operable upon the strep in op- ,oss

position to the action of the retracting means.

12. In a razor-strep protector, a-casing having a wall provided with a strep outlet,

strep-retracting means within said casing,

casing and adapted to support the body of.

a strep in a single open loop with the free end of the strep extending through the outlet, said reel including two spaced apart disks having strep supporting members adjacent their peripheraledges.

14-. In a razor-strep protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep outlet, and a, reel mounted to rotate within said casing and adapted to support the body, of

a strep in a single open loop with the free end of the strep extending through the outlet, said reel including two spaced apart disks and corrugated strep supporting members connecting said members adjacent their peripheral edges.

15. In a razor-strep protector, a casing constituting a chamber having a strep-outlet, and a reel mounted to rotate within said casing and adapted to support the body or" a strep in a single open loop withthe free end of the strep extending through the outlet, said reel including two spaced apart disksand perforated corrugated strep supporting members connecting said members adjacent their peripheral edges.

16. The combination of a razor strep, box, a flexible connection to which the razor strep is attached, means for drawing said flexible connection into said box, the front wall of said box having an opening through which the razor strep extends, a handle projecting from the forward end of the strep, and means for holding saidfiexible connection so that while said flexible connection is thus held the razor strep may be removed and another razor strep substituted 4 therefor.

l7.v The combination of a razor strep, a

box, a flexible connection attached to said strep, means tending to move said flexible connection into said box, and means for temporarily holding the end of said flexible connection adjacent said razor strep so that the razor strep may be removed and another razor strep substituted therefor.

Signed at New York in the county and State of New York this sixth day of February 1919.

JOHN NOLAN. 

